Boy Found After Three-Year Search

In 2006 and 2007 I was on assignment for the National Geographic Magazine for a story on the Hazaras of Afghanistan. I traveled west of Bamiyan City to a small village near the lakes at Band-e-Amir, Afghanistan’s first national park.

Lake at Band-e-Amir 2002

I was visiting a school when I photographed this boy, Ali Aqa, who wants to grow up and be a lawyer. When the story was published, many people around the world wanted to help him achieve his dream, but it has taken years to find him.

Ali Aqa, 2007

His family is poor, his clothes used, but 15-year-old Ali Aqa isn’t deterred: He plans to be a lawyer. Childhood memories include Taliban occupation of his village in Bamiyan. “They burned everything, even my school,” he says. “I pray to God no regime comes like that again.” We have now located him with the help of the UNAMA (United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan) and school officials. We are in the process of working with local educators to help him prepare to start his college education when he graduates from high school next year.

Qala-e Sabzi, Bamiyan Province, Afghanistan, 2007.

There is nothing more gratifying than helping people whom I have photographed because most often, it is impossible to locate them again.

Although a year on from the original response posting. It is fabulous that effort was made to track down this young boy and give him the assistance to achieve his dream. Brilliant. Not just a remarkable photographer, but those who provided the drive to find him. Inspiring, keep it up!

These days, many publishers want ‘model release’ from your subjects, which is very frustrating when you’re a travel/street photographer. After making photos, chances are, the photographer will never meet his subject again. And then, there’s this question of language. What can be done? You just can’t carry a pen-paper and an interpreter all the time with you? What’s your opinion about this trend? What do you do in similar situations?

[…] only one of the top National Geographic photographers (which I aspire to be someday), but he also gives back to those he takes photographs of. I also find him inspiring, because in a recent interview he gave, […]

You just reassured me that returning to school at the age of 35 to pursue my dream of becoming a photojournalist is a most worthwhile venture. I am a student at Columbia College. Tommorrow, I am giving a presentation about you and your work.

Thank you for the inspiration and sharing the stories behind your photos.

Mr. McCurry,
You are not only a legendary photography, but you are also a good man.
I tip my hat to you for doing your deed as a humanitarian. You are the voice of those less unfortunate than us, I pray and hope that you continue to educate us and open our eyes to the rest of the world that needs our attention.

I like this post very much. Simple but touching with compelling images you always made. It shows simple things like dreams other people wouldn’t see until the photographer raise it. A simple dream in a difficult situation. I like your effort gave positive responds to many people.

Great story and thank you for sharing such beautiful pictures of Afghanistan.
Truly a magnificent landscape. Even shockingly beautiful, and I think it is so important for people to see the beauty as well as destruction. Appreciating will hopefully make people want to help and have compassion.

Steve,
I’m a Muslim, Ali-aqa is a Muslim and Talibans are Muslim; this might be literally true, but doubtlessly there is an obvious contradiction here, at least between that oppressed Afghan boy and his coreligionist, but oppressive Talibans. For years, this was a paradox for me as a Muslim who merely inherits Islam from his parents. I had no background knowledge of the basic idea behind Islam that leads to such contradictory reflections.
All answers that were given to me were illogical and somewhat sophistry; so I decided to answer it by myself. I started studying the books of a well-known Iranian sociologist and historian who his thoughts were severely excommunicated by the clerics of the time; but attracted a vast number of non-Muslims to Islam.
In short, he defined Islam as an ideology between materialism and idealism, based upon the unique pillar of “people”; which any deviation from it, will lead to falling into either a mere idealism (seclusion, and incuriosity toward the society’s future) or a mere materialism (class conflict and eventually oppression). For him, the unique slogan of Islam is: we should search for god or nirvana not in the heaven; but in the “true spirit of people”. However, such a definition is severely metamorphosed today.
With the goal of understanding the meaning of the “true spirit of people”, I started studying his large book “The human”; but after reading about sixty papers, I accidentally became familiar with you, through one of my friends.
I heard nothing about you until that time, but I saw your portraits of the people around the world, one after another and dive even deeper into the “true spirit of people” which I was seeking it for years. It’s about three weeks that I have not enough time to continue reading “The human”, because seeing either one of your shots takes a relatively long time!
You taught me Islam’s idealistic aspect better than any cleric, with your photos; and its materialistic aspect by helping people like Ali-aqa and Sharbat to reach their dreams. Your work in short, shows the true spirit of people.

This is such a beautiful to come across at this point in my life. At a time when i have taken on my new profession as documentary & human rights photographer with the hope that it can make a difference.

Steve,
Thanks for sharing this story.
This made me believe once again that through photography there’s always an opportunity to help, assist, show compassion.
I’ve been thinking a lot in how we can use this art in order to help people, and this is just one example… giving voice to the unheard people.
Thank you again,